As you may be aware, I began working on the sequel to "Dead Man's Breath" in July, before DMB was even published. After four months, I had written about 10,000 words that quite frankly sucked. My solution was to scrap it and start over. On November 2, that's exactly what I did.
Just after midnight on December 9, I completed the first draft. To put some context around that, I started "Dead Man's Breath" on September 1, 2019 and completed the first draft on May 14, 2020.
While it's entirely possible that I will not like it when I begin rewrites and the editing process, I don't believe that will be the case. It is in the vein of "Dead Man's Breath" in that it is relevant to current events, perhaps on an even broader scale than DMB.
Before anyone asks when it will be released, the answer is I have no idea. Since the release of DMB, I have stated that I will take my time on polishing the sequel and I won't announce a release date until the finished product is, well, finished.
While the first book has outperformed my expectations so far, it is far from what traditional publishing companies would deem a success. One of my biggest opportunities for improvement is in marketing, which is a tad disheartening as promoting is an area I consider to be my strong suit. However, I am learning that there is a big difference between promoting pro wrestling and marketing a book.
Streamlining and better utilizing social media is key to improving my marketing. I'm not ashamed to say how confusing and complicated the social media landscape is currently, but it is a necessary evil.
I have what I believe are some cool ideas to publicize the next book, while engaging with readers. I pray that the world will have returned to some semblance of normalcy by the time it is released, so that we can have a traditional, in-person book signing.
As always, Thank you for your support and taking the time to read my ramblings.
Take care and I'll talk to you soon!